Maybe it's the tropical girl in me, but I have never enjoyed the cold. I start fretting when November rolls around, as the thermostat starts dropping. However, the autumnal colours are an amazing visual treat -- just look at this view of the City of London from on top of Hampstead Heath.

All the leaves on the ground remind me that from a Chinese medicine point of view, autumn is a time for letting go, much as the leaves drop off from the trees in preparation for winter. Autumn's associated organs (in the Chinese medicine sense) are the Lungs and Large Intestine. If the Lungs are healthy, they ward off infections such as colds and influenza and ensure that your immune system is in good shape. On the other hand, the Large Intestine is responsible for eliminating waste from the body. Problems in this area  might be constipation, loose bowels or abdominal pain. 

If you often have chest complaints such as coughs or asthma, seem to catch colds easily,  or experience bowel problems or abdominal discomfort, then you might have an imbalance in the Lungs or Large Intestine organs. Don't suffer in silence. Call me for a chat to see how acupuncture can help.

​My ears tingled this morning while listening to the news – the latest advice from NICE (England’s health watchdog) is that doctors should be more prepared to discuss the use of HRT (hormone replacement therapy) with patients who have symptoms of menopause. Because studies have linked HRT with heart disease and breast and ovarian cancer, there has been a fall in prescriptions in England since the studies came out in 2002-2003.
 
My ears tingled because I get very excited when I see how Chinese medicine has so much to offer people with conditions that are not very well treated by orthodox medicine. For more than 2,000 years, acupuncture and Chinese herbs have been used to treat symptoms such as night sweats, hot flushes, and low mood.
 
Health in Chinese medicine is a reflection of the harmony of Yin and Yang. Yang corresponds to heat, fire, dryness, activity, light and day; yin to cold, water, fluid, rest, darkness and night. As women get older, they naturally have less Yin energy. We say that they have symptoms that correspond to a pattern called Yin Deficiency.
 
Acupuncture’s brilliant trick is that by needling specific points in the body, it brings the body’s energies back into balance. We can reduce Yin Deficiency, thus alleviating the symptoms of night sweats and hot flushes. If you are not crazy about the idea of using HRT and want to use a safe way of managing symptoms of menopause, consider acupuncture.
 
Click here to see the research evidence for the use of Chinese medicine for menopausal symptoms.